Marriage in the Church

The catholic church ("catholic" means "universal") as established by Jesus Christ himself and the original apostles, recognizes 7 sacraments. A sacrament is an outward sign (by you), instituted by Christ himself, to give or receive grace. "Grace" is a form of divine assistance given to a person in order to advance him or her toward their supernatural destiny of fellowship with God. A sacrament is also referred to as "a sacred oath" by you to our creator.

The term supernatural is used to distinguish the reality we perceive within our model world and universe from the reality we do not perceive in our current condition (i.e the 6th sense, the 4th dimension, the reality we perceive in the physical world is incomplete).


The seven sacraments are:

1) Baptism

2) Confirmation

3) Eucharist

4) Penance

5) Anointing of the Sick

6) Holy Orders

7) Matrimony



It is matrimony (marriage) that i address herein.

There is a reason a Christian does not get married on a beach, or on a cruise ship, or in the office of a state government's "justice of the peace". Canon Law 1115 requires a catholic marriage to take place in the parish of either spouse. The parish is important. A sacrament is not a celebration of the individual, it is a celebration of the whole church. Even penance, confessing sin, is a celebration of the church in joy over the "return" of one repentant sinner. The "parish" also represents society. The Second Vatican Council made this observation, what should be obvious to anyone:

"The well-being of the individual person and of both human and Christian society is closely bound up with the healthy state of conjugal and family life."

This means that marriage is the foundation for both the church and society (community). When marriage fails, the church and society suffer negative consequences. Of course this does not imply that there are not exceptions, some marriages can be dissolved peacefully and not have negative consequences on the community, but if children are involved, or if the breakdown leads to a continuity of immoral behavior, negative direct and indirect consequences are common as evidenced by social studies of communities where single parents and fatherless children abound.

A marriage between a husband and a wife includes promises to each other of a love that is faithful, permanent,exclusive, self-sacrificing, and life-giving. But these promises are not just between two people, they are to our creator and our church (community) as well. It is a public promise before the eyes and ears of the church and society and God. The celebration of marriage therefore must be public (i.e. to include many fellow Christians) and vows exchanged by an authorized (recognized) witness of the church (i.e. priest, deacon). The marriage being a sacrament is therefore also the acknowledgement of the participation of the husband and wife in the covenant (agreement) or relationship between God/Christ and his church.

The grace of marriage helps each spouse cooperate in Christ/God's plan of redemption by raising children in the faith. Yes, one of the primary purposes of marriage is to raise a family, whether children are biological or adopted.

The sacrament of marriage is ecclesiastical (of the church) and not secular, which is why it must be celebrated in a church and witnessed by fellow Christians.